From Catherine Bolsover, Deutsche Welle:  German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said he is willing for Germany’s military to share some of its duties with other armies in Europe.

In an opinion piece written for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung daily on Thursday, Guttenberg said there could be a "sharing of roles and duties" among European countries.

In Brussels later Thursday, Guttenberg together with his Swedish counterpart Sten Tolgfors will present a project advocating reinforced European military cooperation. European defense ministers are meeting to examine how to make up for the general cut in military budgets due to widespread austerity measures. …

The minister suggested three categories of cooperation. The first would cover military duties that are simply in the national interest and can be handled alone. The second would be a "straight collaboration between partners, without them abandoning national responsibilites." In the third category, there were duties for which "one could lean on a European partner."  (photo: AP)

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